U.S. stocks fall after July payrolls increase less than forecast

AIG jumped 1.9% to $47.98. The insurer that repaid a government bailout last year announced a quarterly dividend of 10 cents a share. It also posted net income that climbed 17% to $2.73 billion in the second quarter.

LinkedIn surged 11% to $235.80. The operator of the biggest online professional-networking service said revenue jumped 59% to $363.7 million in the second quarter. That exceeded the average analyst estimate of $354.3 million.

Dell increased 5.4% to $13.65. Michael Dell and Silver Lake Management LLC agreed to increase their offer for the computer maker to $13.75 a share with a special dividend of 13 cents. Dell and Silver Lake had offered $13.65.

Sealed Air Corp. rose 8.8% to $30.32 for the largest advance in the S&P 500. The packing-material maker reported second-quarter adjusted profit of 35 cents a share, beating the average analyst estimate of 25 cents.

Cable Stocks

Viacom Inc. jumped 5.9% to $78.75. The owner of cable networks MTV and Nickelodeon doubled its stock-buyback program to $20 billion and posted higher-than-estimated sales.

Charter Communications Inc. climbed 3.4% to $132.30. The fourth-largest U.S. cable company by subscribers has held talks about combining with rival Cox Communications Inc., according to two people with knowledge of the matter.

Charter and its shareholder Liberty Media Corp. are still pursuing an acquisition of Time Warner Cable Inc., the people said. Time Warner Cable, which has been resistant to a combination with Charter, slipped 1.7% to $115.70.

Cablevision Systems Corp. climbed 4% to $19.39 even after the fifth-largest U.S. cable provider reported second- quarter sales that missed analysts’ estimates. The stock climbed 25% this year through yesterday, driven by speculation it may be an acquisition target.

Chief Executive Officer James Dolan said on the earnings call that “you never say never” to potential mergers and acquisitions.